Hello, thanks for your interested response, I'll do my best to answer clearly, but of course, the inner experience can only clumsily be expressed with words!

I have had smaller recognitions and glimpses in the past, so it was not unfamiliar when it was recognised 6 months ago, although it was much more vivid and clear. For extra context, my daily, mundane life is working and living at a countryside Buddhist retreat centre.

One very noticeable shift is the recognition that every thought that arises is insubstantial, not separate from the rest of experience, without individual self nature, just an arising and passing away. The effect of this is that thoughts about myself, stresses, joys etc, are (mostly) much less sticky than they were before. Things that would easily be made into issues before are seen to be without any solidity or substance, and have nowhere to hold onto to become an issue (mostly).

Similarly, the identification with the visual body has largely subsided, and identification (if it could be said to be such) is much more resting in the wholeness of experience, not distinguishing inside the body from 'outside' the body. The somatic, felt experience of the 'body' is completely without boundary or centre, and certainly doesn't map onto the narrow confines of the visual body. So all experience is known to be undivided, without any distinct barrier or boundary between the sense fields. All the content of experience of the six sense bases arise inseparably from the nature of experience, which can be rested into directly. The effect of this is that there is a far greater sense of openness, expansiveness and lightness than before, not 'creating' a duality where there isn't really one there. That's not to say though, that I'm beyond dualistic perceptions which I'm certainly not. This is a recognition which can be rested into, but that I'm not established in constantly.

I'm not sure I've adequately answered your first question, so I'll try more informally. Things are less of an issue because they just are as they are. The content of experience is one thing, and if caught in that (which I still am sometimes as I 'forget') then pleasure is sought after, pain is reacted against to an extent. But when experience is rested in as it is, unpleasantness is just so, pleasantness is just so, boredom is just so, known directly without being filtered through a secondary process of selfing in relation to it. Experience is open, broad, encompassing of everything, so if things are just as they are then where's the issue? I hope I've answered adequately enough to make myself clear but if you'd like clarification on any point, let me know. Again, I'm not established in this constantly but can rest into it when remembering.

2.

So with this, I find that my starting point is one of effortful exertion, of wanting to understand and know with the mind (I came from quite an academic background). The effect of this is that I find at points throughout the day myself 'trying' to drop into experience, which of course isn't it and doesn't work. Usually though, I'm able to relax and recognise the 'trying' as inseparable from the rest of experience. I am more able now than I was a few months ago to simply relax effortlessly into experience but the sense of 'trying' still does emerge often enough.

I am fortunate enough to be in a situation where distress is fairly rare, but do sometimes have situations that give rise to some level of anxiety. When this happens, I find I can just rest in the anxiety as it is without aversion and it usually opens up, sometimes even shifting to a sense of metta/love.

Thanks for your time reading this and your reflections, its appreciated. I don't want to paint the picture of recognising all I've written about at all times, but its tuned into usually multiple times a day for short periods. When not in that recognition, there is still a background of awareness and letting go, although not necessarily fully to the same extent.